(57) An apparatus and a method for assembling the slats of a venetian blind in which slats are fed in turn into the venetian blind ladders and are raised to a first position sequentially to form, at that first position, a stack of assembled slats. The length of stroke of the lifting mechanism, preferably a linear motor, is restrained by an abutment which is removed as the last slat of a stack is being lifted, so that the whole stack is then lifted to a higher position at which it is retained and the ladders are moved past the slat feed point so that no slats are inserted therein. The next stack of slats is then formed at the first position and before it is completed, the ladder means are cut between the first and second positions.